Drugs in stadiums and attacks on fans: police uncovered a network of 51 defendants

Greek police announced liquidation criminal group, consisting mainly of organized fans of one of the Thessaloniki clubs.

According to investigators, network members were not limited to fan conflicts: they were involved in the sale of drugs at sports venues, attacked supporters of other teams, committed robberies, threatened people and used weapons.

The operation took place on the morning of June 29 in Thessaloniki, Chalkidiki and Mykonos. As a result, they were detained 20 peopleof which 15 are considered members of a criminal organization. The police consider four more to be accomplices or people who benefited from its activities; Separately, the mother of a minor participant was detained on charges of improper supervision of a child.

The main thing is several points

• Police detained 20 people in Thessaloniki, Chalkidiki and Mykonos.
• The 15 detainees, according to investigators, were part of the main core of the criminal organization.
• In total appears in the case materials 51 people.
• The group, police say, has been active since at least August 2021.
• The investigation established 30 counts of possession and sale of drugs during eight sports matches.
• In addition, 88 cases of drug trafficking were identified in the Thessaloniki region.
• Police also claim 46 episodes of fan violence that have not previously been reported officially.
• Among the items seized were a pistol, a shotgun, knives, ammunition, drugs and €8,610 in cash.

Fan structure with a criminal “superstructure”

According to the message ΕΛ.ΑΣ., we are not talking about a random group of people gathered for a match. The investigation claims that the participants had a hierarchical structure, distributed roles and sustainable activities since at least August 2021.

Police believe that the group consisted mainly of organized fans of one of Thessaloniki’s sports clubs. In addition to conflicts with rival fans, the participants, according to investigators, used the sports environment as a convenient platform for selling drugs.

The stadium appears in this story as more than just a place of emotion and football songs. According to the police, he became a point of distribution of drugs, contacts, intimidation and displays of force.

Drugs during matches

The investigation identified 30 cases of possession and sale of narcotic substances during eight sports matches. Another 88 episodes, according to police, are related to drug dealing in the wider Thessaloniki area.

During searches in apartments, cars and other premises, about 1.68 kg of cannabis, 41.1 g of heroin, 1.5 g of cocaine, and cash were seized.

The mere presence of relatively small volumes of seizures does not necessarily reflect the real scale of the activity. The police are investigating not only what was discovered on the day of the searches, but also the alleged network of supplies, sales and people who ensured its work.

Attacks, hammers and struggles for “territory”

The investigation links the organization to a number of attacks on fans of other teams. In one episode on February 16, 2026, a group of people on motorcycles and a car, according to police, chased two people on a motorcycle in the center of Thessaloniki and tried to attack them.

In another incident, on March 6, a fan of a rival club was attacked with hammers. According to investigators, his motorcycle was taken from him, which was then seriously damaged.

Also included in the case materials is an attack in Kalamaria, which is no longer associated with opponents, but with an internal conflict for control over the fan association. Even in this environment, where slogans usually speak of “brotherhood,” the issue of leadership seems to have been decided by methods far removed from voting.

Murder case and persons involved outside the operation

The investigation materials mention an episode of concealing a criminal related to the murder of a fan of a rival team, committed on March 12, 2026.

One of the alleged key members of the organization is already in prison. Three more main defendants, including the alleged leader of the group, have been identified and are being sought. Police assess that one of them may be abroad.

All these circumstances will still be assessed by the court. At the current stage, we are talking about the version of the investigation and the charges, and not about the court decisions that have entered into force.

46 previously unreported episodes of fan violence

Of particular significance, police identified 46 additional cases of fan violence that had not previously been officially reported to law enforcement. They were established after analyzing digital materials and publications on social networks.

According to ΕΛ.ΑΣ., members of the group filmed the attacks, processed the videos and published them on the Internet in order to demonstrate strength and consolidate their influence among fans.

In other words, violence became not a side effect of the conflict, but part of the public image. Blows, threats and humiliations turned into content, and then into a tool for controlling the street and one’s own environment.

What did the police seize?

During the operation the following were discovered and seized:

• semi-automatic pistol with two magazines;
• two air pistols;
• 48 rounds of various calibers;
• shotgun;
• 10 folding knives and knives;
• naval signal light;
• 1,682.39 g of cannabis;
• 41.1 g of heroin;
• 1.5 g of cocaine;
• €8,610 in cash.

The investigation continues

The case includes charges of forming and participating in a criminal organization, drug and weapons violations, dangerous infliction of bodily injury, robbery, property damage, harboring a felon and improper supervision of a minor.

All detainees are handed over to the judicial authorities. The police continue to search for the remaining defendants and check possible additional episodes.

Editorial comment

The story is alarming not because it again involves fans. The football environment in itself is not a crime. The problem begins where, under its cover, a network has been growing for years, in which the match becomes a convenient place for drug dealing, and the club scarf is used as a pass to a world of threats, weapons and violence.

Eight matches, 30 drug episodes, dozens attacks46 unreported cases of violence. All this does not happen overnight and does not exist without people who choose not to notice what is happening.

When violence starts being filmed for social media, it ceases to be a “fight after the match.” It becomes a way to make money, intimidate and maintain influence. And then the only question that remains is: who exactly looked at this system for so many years and saw in it just “overly emotional fans.”

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